The first round match between Nick Kyrgios and Roberto Bautista Agut continued to add more controversy in the US Open. After getting into several arguments with chair umpire Carlos Bernardes, the Australian vented his frustration in more ways.
Along with verbal arguments, he added ball abuse and a time violation to his growing list of violations.
Nick Kyrgios sends a tennis ball into the stands
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Despite Kyrgios bringing his energy on court, he struggled to make an impression in the first two sets. He trailed his Spanish opponent 3-6, 4-6 before the start of the third set.
During the match, Kyrgios engaged in a verbal battle with umpire Bernardes at various points. He mainly argued with him about bathroom breaks. Stefanos Tsitsipas took a lot of those too during his match against Andy Murray earlier.
At the beginning of the third set, the Australian’s actions got worse, as he sent a ball flying into the stands. This constitutes ball abuse, which got added to his list of violations.
Kyrgios also received a time violation in the third set
Towards the end of the third set, Kyrgios also received a time violation to cap off a frustrating day for the talented Aussie. To make matters worse, Bautista Agut scored a bagel in the last set, with Kyrgios failing to muster a single game.
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Roberto Bautista Agut beats Nick Kyrgios 6-3, 6-4, 6-0 to reach the 2nd round at the #USOpen. Lost 6 (!) points in the 3rd set.
4th consecutive loss for Kyrgios, the worst streak of his career.
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) August 31, 2021
In fact, the Australian lost a stunning six points in the third set. In addition, this is his fourth loss on the trot after first round exits at the Atlanta Open, Citi Open and the National Bank Open. This is the worst streak in his tennis career.
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Meanwhile, Bautista Agut who moved past Kyrgios with relative ease, will face Emil Ruusuvuori in the second round of the hard court Grand Slam.
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